Calorie calculator

How many calories do I need a day?

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans estimate, for example, 2,000 calories for a moderately active 30-year-old woman and 2,600 for a moderately active 30-year-old man. Needs fall with age and rise with activity — the calculator looks up your row. The age, sex and activity table comes from the 2020–2025 edition of the guidelines (Appendix 2); the newer 2025–2030 edition (January 2026) does not reprint a calorie table, so this is still the latest official table of its kind.

What do sedentary, moderately active and active mean?

In the Dietary Guidelines, sedentary means only the activity of daily living; moderately active is like walking 1.5 to 3 miles a day at 3 to 4 mph; active is walking more than 3 miles a day at that pace.

What is resting energy expenditure?

The calories your body burns at rest. The Mifflin–St Jeor equation estimates it from your weight, height, age and sex: a 30-year-old man of 70 kg and 175 cm burns about 1,649 calories a day at rest.

Why do the two numbers differ?

The daily estimate includes activity and is set for a reference body — 5 ft 10 in and 154 lb for men, 5 ft 4 in and 126 lb for women. The resting figure uses your own size but leaves out activity.

Should I use this to plan a diet?

Use it as a starting point only. Calorie needs vary from person to person; a doctor or registered dietitian can set targets for weight loss, pregnancy or a health condition.

Do the Dietary Guidelines estimates apply during pregnancy?

No. The estimated calorie needs in the Dietary Guidelines are for adults who are not pregnant or breastfeeding. Needs during pregnancy and nursing are higher and should be set with a doctor or dietitian.

Why do calorie needs go down with age?

The table lowers the estimates in steps from age 19 onward for both sexes, because resting energy use and typical activity both tend to fall with age. In the Mifflin–St Jeor equation each extra year subtracts 5 calories a day.

Is the calculator for children?

No. It uses adult tables, from age 19. Children and teenagers have different estimates that depend on growth, and a pediatrician is the right person to ask.

How the calculation works

The daily estimate is a table lookup. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans give calorie levels for each age group, sex and activity level, based on a reference man (5 ft 10 in, 154 lb) and woman (5 ft 4 in, 126 lb). The calculator picks the row for your age and the column for your activity level. The resting figure is separate and uses your own weight and height in the Mifflin–St Jeor equation: 10 × kg + 6.25 × cm − 5 × age, plus 5 for men or minus 161 for women. The two numbers are not meant to match, because the first includes activity and the second does not.

Worked example

A 45-year-old woman who weighs 65 kg, is 168 cm tall and is moderately active. The Dietary Guidelines table lists 1,800 calories for a sedentary woman of this age, 2,000 for moderately active and 2,200 for active. Her resting energy by Mifflin–St Jeor is 10 × 65 + 6.25 × 168 − 5 × 45 − 161 = 1,314 calories. The moderately active estimate of 2,000 is 1.52 times her resting figure, which reflects the walking and daily movement behind that activity level. For comparison, a moderately active 70-year-old man is listed at 2,200 calories and a moderately active 30-year-old man at 2,600.

Common mistakes

• Choosing the activity level by guess. Use the Dietary Guidelines definitions: sedentary is only the activity of daily living, moderately active is like walking 1.5 to 3 miles a day at 3 to 4 mph, and active is walking more than 3 miles a day at that pace.
• Eating the resting number. Resting energy is not a goal. Daily needs include activity.
• Treating an estimate as a prescription. The table is for reference people. Real needs differ from person to person.

Sources and related calculators

Daily estimates: Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020 to 2025, Appendix 2, Table A2-2 (US Department of Agriculture and US Department of Health and Human Services); resting energy: M. D. Mifflin et al., Am J Clin Nutr 1990;51:241–247. Related: BMR calculator, calories burned calculator and macro calculator.

For general information only — not medical advice. Talk with your doctor or another health professional about your own health. How we check our calculators.